Balanced Diet

[christopherkearney0]

I know that tortoises diets need to be full of variety. But I was wondering if anyone could offer a list that would say something like, feed vegetables on this day, fruits here, mazuri here. Like this below:

Monday: Vegetables
Tuesday: Protein
Wednesday: Fruit

etc. Thanks in advance!

 

[Levi the Leopard]

I tried to do it that way...it was too complicated and restrictive.

I keep a constant supply of good greens in the fridge. This varies from one shop to the next. Right now I have Spring Mix, green leaf lettuce and romaine. Last week I had red leaf lettuce and collards.

I always have Mazuri and Grassland Tortoise Food.

I grow lots of good food outside, pasture mixes, dandelion, hibiscus, roses, collards, pansy, squash plant..etc. (my list is really long)

I also have a Mulberry tree and let weeds grow in my untreated yard.

Each morning I simply choose a couple different options and collect them in a bowl. I don't record what is fed on what day. I don't count how long it's been since I picked some rose bush leaves or bought a certain store bought green. I just pick and choose. I know they get variety and I'm not stressed from trying to stick to a list.

Usually each morning they get a soak followed by a Mazuri breakfast. I mix up my variety of greens with that. They spend the rest of the day grazing for themselves.

Hope this helps. It's not a Mon, Tue, Wed.. list like you asked for but trying to keep a strict daily list was too stressful for me.

 

[christopherkearney0]

Thank you! That does help! I think that would be too stressful. But Getting a good idea was helpful. Do you ever give yours boiled eggs? What about any fruits? What kind do you have? Do you feed them only once a day?

 

[Tom]

Why do you have 21 roosters and only 4 hens?

Occasional boiled eggs and fruit are fine for red foots, not so good for you other species.

 

[christopherkearney0]

I must have placed those wrong. I have 21 hens and 4 Roos! Haha.

 

[Jacqui]

You can feed them once a day or break it down into two or more meals through out the day. You might feed the main meal once a day, but then allow free grazing or I like to hide food "treats" like mushrooms throughout the enclosure for them to hunt. It's all about what works best for you and that may change from day to day depending on your schedule. Like work week they may get the one main meal in the am and when you get home a snack. Weekends perhaps you have more time so they get smaller, but more often meals and more food being hiden or given in different ways (like whole leaves, freshly picked weeds over premade food, or leaves hung up so they have to reach for them).

 

[Tom]

Good suggestions above. Many people over think this stuff. Just grab an item or two off the good list and throw down some food everyday. If they eat it all up, feed them some more and put more down the next day. If there is leftover, cut them back. Take note of what they gobble up readily and use that to introduce new foods. Finely chop up lots of their favorites and mix in a small amount of the finely chopped new foods.

Here is a diet sheet for sulcatas: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-76744.html
All that food would be good for a Russian too, just skip the grass and hay. You'll have to ask a RF keeper about the best diet for them, but it will include a lot of the above too.

Remember, you will have decades to perfect the "art" of feeding your tortoises.



Oh. And 4.21 sounds much more doable to me...

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Re: RE: Balanced Diet

Thank you! That does help! I think that would be too stressful. But Getting a good idea was helpful. Do you ever give yours boiled eggs? What about any fruits? What kind do you have? Do you feed them only once a day?

No boiled eggs or fruit because I only keep Leopards and Russians.

My Russian can free graze on whatever he wants all day long. His pen is large and well planted. I almost never "feed" him.
My Leopards are fed the Mazuri mixed breakfast every morning and allowed unlimited grazing the rest of the day. The baby leopards that are still inside always have a pile of food, all day long.